This invention relates to a counterbalance device, and particularly relates to a fully adjustable counterbalance device which can be selectively slidably mounted on a rotatable spit of a rotisserie.
Rotisseries are commonly used for cooking an object such as a roast over or in a barbecue pit, or a barbecue grill, or an oven, or a fireplace. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,730,467 issued on May 1, 1973 to Leslie G. Dutchburn and entitled "MEANS FOR REMOVABLE ATTACHMENT OF A LOAD SUPPORTING ASSEMBLY TO A SURFACE", a rotisserie is shown for cooking an object in a fireplace.
In using a rotisserie, it is essential to mount the object properly on the spit of the rotisserie such that the weight of the object is distributed radially evenly about the spit. An uneven weight distribution would cause the spit to rotate in an eccentric erratic fashion. This is due to that the object would have a heavier portion on one side of the spit than a lesser portion on the opposite side of the spit, so that in half of its rotating cycle the spit is lugging or raising the heavier portion of the object such that its speed is slower, and in the other half cycle the heavier portion of the object is exerting a downward pivotal force on the spit such that its speed becomes accelerated. The erratic rotation would cause the object to cook unevenly and would sometimes even cause damage to the rotisserie. Since it is quite difficult to mount the object properly in an even fashion on the spit, such undesirable imbalance problem always exists in using a rotisserie.
It is well known that the imbalance condition of the rotisserie can be compensated by mounting a counterbalance on the spit. Commonly, the counterbalance consists of a collar having a rod mounted perpendicularly thereon. The collar is secured on the spit such that the rod extends transversely outwards from one side of the spit. A weight is mounted on the rod. When the object is mounted on the spit, the collar is rotated until the rod is extending outwardly opposite to the heavier portion of the object. The weight is then adjusted until a weight balanced condition is obtained on both sides of the spit.
The main drawback of known counterbalance devices is that they provide counterbalance to only one side of the spit such that sometimes it is difficult to attain a perfectly balanced condition. In order to meet all counterbalance requirements, the user must carry different sizes of weights and must change the weights to achieve the desirable balanced condition. The weights are subject to loss and are difficult to be adjusted. Furthermore, it is dificult to mount such counterbalance device on the spit since the collar must be fitted onto the spit by dismounting the latter from the support assembly of the rotisserie. This operation is difficult and sometimes impossible when the object is already mounted on the spit.